February 2014 Health Newsletter

Looking to increase athletic performance and possibly your vertical jump height? Give an adjustment a try! A small blinded trial was conducted recently in young female athletes who were suffering from ankle joint dysfunction to see if an adjustment to the joint could affect their vertical jump height. The ankle joint, more technically referred to as the talocrural joint, is the joint formed from the ends of the lower leg bones (tibia and fibula) and the top bone of the ankle, the talus. Half of the female athletes with ankle joint dysfunction received an adjustment to their ankle joint once a week for three weeks while the other half received a sham treatment once a week for three weeks. On average, those receiving the adjustment to their ankle joint saw an average 0.47 cm increase in their vertical jump as compared with the sham group. Itís important to recognize that adjustments provided by doctors of chiropractic can be delivered to and benefit more than just the joints of the spine. If you or someone you know is suffering from pain or dysfunction, or is simply looking to enhance their physical performance and overall health, give your local chiropractor a call today!

A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states Americans are eating too much sugar and itís killing us. As the consumption of added sugars rises, so too does oneís risk of dying from heart disease. According to the data, compared with those individuals who got less than 10% of their daily calories from sugar, those with 10-25% of their daily calories coming from sugar were 30% more likely to die of cardiovascular disease and those with more than 25% of their daily calories coming from sugar were twice as likely to die of cardiovascular disease. This becomes even more significant considering that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. The concern isnít related to the sugars occurring naturally in fruits and vegetables. Instead, itís the added sugars in foods such as sugary drinks and beverages, candy, desserts and other sweetened carbohydrate snacks. In fact, most processed foods we consume have added sugar to make them taste better. So, read the nutritional labels on food packaging and strive to stick to what the American Heart Association recommends: Limiting your daily consumption of added sugars to 150 calories for men and 100 calories for women.

New research indicates it may not be a bad idea to let your eating habits relax during the weekend, so long as itís done in moderation. In fact, long-term weight loss might be more effective if dieters focus more on stricter weekday diets and allow themselves room to cheat somewhat on the weekends - A strategy that researchers say can allow reasonable weekend splurges while not derailing oneís motivation and weight loss efforts. In this new study, the self-recorded daily weights of 80 adults were evaluated for periods up to 10 months. Data revealed that for the 18 of 80 adults who lost 3% or more of their bodyweight during the weigh-ins, there appeared to be a pattern of weight gain over the weekends and weight loss during the weekdays, with subjects weighing the most on Sunday/Mondays and weighing the least on Fridays. This pattern seemed strongest in those who either lost weight or maintained their bodyweight during the study. In those subjects who gained weight during the study, this pattern was less reflective of their weight changes. Researchers concluded that weight variations between the weekend and weekday are normal and a focus of tightening up oneís dietary habits during the weekdays and loosening them somewhat during the weekend could assist many in achieving their weight loss goals and maintaining a healthy bodyweight longterm.